Grim discovery on board: Body in United Airlines wheel well

Tengrinews.kz - Authorities are investigating a mysterious incident that occurred on December 25 aboard United Airlines Flight 202. The plane from Chicago landed at Kahului Airport, where a dead body was found in the main landing gear niche, according to 9news.com.au.

Authorities in Maui are continuing their investigation after a body was found aboard Flight 202 from Chicago. In a statement, local police said they were "actively investigating" the incident, but did not provide further details. United Airlines officials have also not yet released more information.

The airline only said that the Boeing 787-10's wheel well is accessible only from outside the plane, and it is not yet clear how or when the person got there.

Inquiries made at Kahului Airport also yielded no new information, and a Department of Transportation spokesman said they had no information beyond what United confirmed.

Airplane wheel well - a failed attempt for stowaways

It turns out that this case is far from unique. One of the most common ways stowaways try to get on board is to hide in the plane's wheel well. However, this method is extremely dangerous: according to the US Federal Aviation Administration, more than 77% of such passengers do not survive due to injuries during landing, lack of oxygen, or hypothermia.

Tengrinews.kz previously wrote about how a passenger opens a plane door and steps out onto the wing of a plane.